Search Suspended For Female, 18, Submerged in Car; Stretch of Hwy 84 Reopens in Fremont Area

FREMONT, CA — UPDATE, MONDAY, JAN. 23, 5:30 p.m.

Emergency crews have reopened Niles Canyon Road, State Highway 84, in both directions.

Efforts to recover a car that crashed into rain-swollen Alameda Creek Saturday have been suspended for the day, along with the search for the woman who was driving the vehicle.

In a written statement, Fremont Police said, "First responders have found what appears to be a vehicle in the water approximately 100-200 yards from the initial site of the collision. Due to water conditions, we have not been able to confirm this is the missing vehicle, but due to the proximity of the collision location, we are hopeful. On Tuesday, first responders will transition efforts to recovery and will attempt to remove the vehicle."

The road will close between 9-10 a.m. on Tuesday for the recovery effort.

The car crashed into the creek on Saturday after hitting another another. The vehicle in the creek was driven by an 18-year-old woman from Tracy. Her family has been notified, but the missing woman's name has not been released.

If you travel through the canyon, Fremont Police ask you "to refrain from parking along the roadway and/or looking for the submerged vehicle. Niles Canyon is a narrow roadway and it is not safe to park along the highway."

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UPDATE: MONDAY, JAN. 23, 11 a.m.

Niles Canyon Road is closed today from Fremont to Sunol so emergency crews can search for a car that went off the road and into Alameda Creek on Saturday morning, according to the California Highway Patrol.

At about 10:45 a.m. Saturday, a 2000 silver Honda Accord was traveling west on the road, also called state Highway 84, when it crossed into the eastbound lane and collided with a 2016 white Honda Accord,
according to CHP spokesman Officer Derek Reed.

After striking the white car, the out of control silver Honda careened into the creek and was completely submerged by the time officers arrived, Reed said.

Officers believe the 18-year-old Tracy woman who was driving is likely still inside the silver Honda. No injuries were reported to passengers of the other car, Reed said.

The road closure, which started at 10 a.m. today, will allow teams from the Alameda County Sheriff's Office and the Fremont Fire Department to more safely search for the car and its driver.

Alameda Creek has been running unusually fast and high due to the recent storms, making it difficult for search and rescue personnel to safely attempt to retrieve the car before now.

Niles Canyon Road will be closed until at least this afternoon, and the closure will likely affect the evening commute, Reed said.

Drivers are being told to avoid the area and take Mission Boulevard in Fremont south to northbound Interstate Highway 680.

Drivers coming from the Sunol area are being asked to take southbound Highway 680 to Mission Boulevard.

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MONDAY, JAN. 23 9:18 a.m.

Niles Canyon Road, a stretch of Highway 84 in the Fremont area, is closing to to traffic today so searchers can comb the rain-swollen Alameda Creek for a vehicle and victim believed to be submerged in the water.

An 18-year-old Tracy woman is considered missing after her car plunged Saturday morning into Alameda Creek in unincorporated Alameda County, California Highway Patrol officials said. Officers responded at 10:45 a.m. to Niles Canyon Road, east of Palomares Road, where the woman was involved in a collision before she was determined missing.

The closure for search and rescue was originally scheduled for 10 a.m., but a Fremont Police Department traffic spokesperson told Patch that it's happening earlier due to weather conditions.

The mission is expected to last into the afternoon. If unsuccessful, the road will reopen and additional closures will take place later in the week, officials said.

The woman, whose name is not being released yet, was in a silver 2000 Honda Accord traveling west when her car crossed over the double yellow lines in the road and collided with a white 2016 Honda Accord traveling east, officials said. After the impact, the silver Accord veered to the right and into the creek.

The level of Alameda Creek is abnormally high now with fast-flowing water because of the recent winter storms. That has made it unsafe for search and rescue divers to recover the car.

But rescuers are working with state water resource agency officials to reduce the water level in the creek so rescue operations can begin.

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-Bea Karnes of Patch and Bay City News contributed to this report/Images via Alameda County Sheriff's Office